ABOUT US

Preiser Animal Hospital would like to take this opportunity to welcome you, your family, and your special family member to our website. As you continue to browse and explore our website, it is our hope that you will learn more about our dedication to your family and the quality veterinary medicine and service we provide.

Our goal here at Preiser Animal Hospital has always been to assemble a veterinary health care team committed to providing exceptional client service and veterinary health care. PreiserAnimal Hospital displays an unrivaled commitment to our clients through continuing education, technological advances in veterinary medicine and service, and most importantly, administering compassionate care to all pets entrusted to us.

Fear Free Certified Professionals

Some of our staff are Fear Free Certified! This means that our mission is to prevent and alleviate fear, anxiety, and stress in pets by inspiring and educating the people who care for them.

Rest assured that when you bring your pets to Preiser Animal Hospital, we will ensure a Fear Free experience.

YOUR PETS, OUR FAMILY.

Preiser Animal Hospital is a full-service animal hospital whose mission is to provide the highest standard of veterinary care for pets. We provide friendly, informative, and supportive services for you and your pet, while maintaining a superior working environment for our employees.

MEET OUR TEAM!

Dr. Kristine Preiser

DVM

Dr. Preiser's Bio

The daughter of veterinarian and hospital founder Dr. Herbert Preiser, Dr. Kristine Preiser is now the Medical Director of Preiser Animal Hospital. Kristine played Division I soccer at Iowa State and at the University of Montana where she also earned a BS in Biology with an emphasis in Zoology and a minor in Philosophy. Kristine attended Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine and then completed her clinical year at Washington State University where she graduated in 2007. Before becoming a veterinarian, Kristine held a number of different jobs including: wilderness firefighter in the Tally Lake Ranger District in Montana; soccer coach in IL, MT, & AK, including the Olympic Development Program and the Head Women’s Coach of the St. Kitt’s and Nevis National Team for over 3 years; worked as a team member on the wolf reintroduction program through the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Department in Grand Teton National Park for a winter season; spent 1 year teaching the ways of the wilderness with troubled youths in Montana to encourage a positive lifestyle (AYA); and she also was a substitute teacher and Youth Soccer coach in Alaska for 2 years.

In her free time, Kristine enjoys reading, playing any sports and anything outdoors, especially soccer and golf, and backpacking, skiing, hiking, kayaking and camping with her dogs Rhoda, Roux, and Bug, and squeaking with her guinea pig Nome. You may also meet her two rescue cats when you come to the animal hospital Chugach (‘Chewie) and Kenai. Giving back to the community is important to Dr. Preiser; she serves as Heartland Animal Shelter’s volunteer medical director for medical and surgical case and she also has recently started a therapy farm in Northern Illinois for both people and animals, pursuing her wildlife license to help any and all animals heal both physically and mentally. Her veterinary interests include: surgery, geriatric medicine, wildlife, orthopedics, exercise rehabilitation, holistic medicine, and reproduction. She is also a huge Jordan Spieth and Bayern Munich fan!! She moved back to the Midwest to be closer to her family, but her heart and passion lie in the Northwestern mountains. Someday she’ll be reunited with the wilderness, she says! 🙂 While she loves what she does in her practice, her dream job would be Dr. Oakley, Yukon Vet! If you watch that show, you’ll know why!

Dr. Jesse Harper

DVM

Dr. Harper's Bio

Dr. Jesse Harper was born in rural Flemington, New Jersey amid horse farms and surrounded by dogs and cats. At the age of 9, he moved with his family to the mountains of Colorado. Here he developed a lifelong love and respect for the animals that shared this world with us. His love for and dedication to animals has continued to grow throughout his life. Dr. Harper initially became a veterinary technician to learn how to work closely with animals and how veterinary clinics function. His experience as a technician motivated him to both pursue and ultimately complete the Colorado State University School of Veterinary Medicine where he was inducted as a member into the highly regarded Phi Zeta. Dr. Harper’s studies continued with a small animal private practice internship in Baltimore, Maryland. This internship acted as a springboard for Dr. Harper’s professional career in Annapolis and later Columbia Maryland. Dr. Harper enjoys working in a close family-like atmosphere with a strong veterinary medicine team.

Dr. Harper has just moved to Chicago and is excited to have joined the Preiser Animal Hospital family to provide your family pet excellence in medical care. In his free time Dr. Harper designs and creates jewelry and to enjoys his lifestyle of exercise and fitness

Jaimie

Technician Team Leader

Jaimie's Bio

Jaimie joined Preiser Animal Hospital family back in February of 2005. She graduated in 2000 from Oregon State University with a degree in Wildlife Biology and that began the start of her career with animals. In 2001, she signed on with the U.S, Fish & Wildlife Service as a team member on the Greater Yellowstone Area Wolf Reintroduction project. After working there for 2 years, Jaimie took a position with the U.S. Forest Service doing flying squirrel surveys in Alaska. Eight years after leaving IL, Jaimie made the decision to move back home to be closer to her family. Outside of work she enjoys playing soccer and going to Blackhawks games, but she’s always up for anything outdoors. Living out west for 8 years has given her a greater appreciation of the beautiful things nature has to offer. Jaimie has 2 cats, Wrigley and Odie that are also Heartland Animal Shelter alumni and 2 dogs, McKinley and Chico. Did you know Jaimie is a carboholic??

Katie

Client Service Representative Team Leader

Katie's Bio

Katie joined our team in December 2011 and has been become an integral part of our team with many roles and responsibilities. We joke and call her everyone’s ‘GTP’ or ‘Go-To-Person’ for all of our staff and clients alike. It really isn’t a joke, ask Katie anything and she’ll know and help you with it all! Her favorite fruit is a refrigerated Honeycrisp! Katie went to cosmetology school and worked in a salon for 10 years but always had a passion for animals and decided to change her career to the veterinary world to pursue her dream!! She hasn’t looked back since. On her time off, Katie enjoys reading and crafting (specializing in scrapbooks), spending time with her husband Kurt and her dog Daisy, and her newborn son!

Elsie

Veterinary Technician

Elsie's Bio

Elsie is a recent graduate from Fox College Veterinary Technical Institute; you may wonder where her love of animals started. Every year since she was three, she took family trips to Guatemala and Mexico patiently working her way into the hearts of homeless dogs and cats. She’d rescue, bathe, and treat small injuries in exchange for the unconditional wagging tails and kisses! With the help of her father, she was a matchmaker, meeting new people and finding her furry friends forever homes. Growing up in Chicago she didn’t see many strays but when she did guess who was the one to bring them home?? Reuniting families and their loved ones was always so rewarding for Elsie. Elsie has recently helped her mom rescue a Pit Bull who was tied to a fence here at Preiser Animal Hospital that needed medical attention. She also has a cat, named Cat, from a litter kittens that Elsie fostered and bottle fed from only a few days old (the litter mates have all been adopted out thru Heartland Animal Shelter). She has two turtles and Polly Miller (her Quaker parrot). She volunteered at Paws Lurie Clinic and senior homes and truly enjoyed helping those in need. Her first job was at Cousins IV, a raw vegan restaurant; she worked there three years and learned so much about the importance of nutrition and has since become a fitness lover. Lifting and running keeps her fit, but dancing is her favorite way to maintain good cardiovascular fitness! She enjoys living a very exciting life, always trying new food and going on adventures; but being a mom is her happiest journey yet, and her two young sons give her an excuse to act silly! Since joining our team at Preiser Animal Hospital in 2015 her mind and her heart have been opened to so many opportunities to make a difference in the lives of the families and their companions. Elsie is blessed knowing she has a whole team of amazing people with the same passion and goals in their hearts as she does for the veterinary field. We are blessed to have Elsie on our team, come in and meet her and you will agree with us on how compassionate, caring, and will do anything to make your pet and you comfortable here at the hospital!!

Russell

Veterinary Assistant

Russell's Bio

Russell joined Preiser Animal Hospital in May of 2016. Russell is from Mundelein, Illinois and is taking classes part-time Biology at Northeastern University. Russell grew up with a labrador, Bluto, named after Senator John Blutarski and would really like to one day own a french bulldog. In his spare time, Russell loves playing and watching sports, especially Bulls and White Sox games. He also loves the outdoors whether it be hiking, biking, or camping. Russell has loved working in the veterinary field ever since starting off as an assistant in 2012 at an ER. Russell is glad to be a part of the Preiser team!

Amy

Certified Veterinary Technician

Amy's Bio

Amy joined the team in October of 2016, she graduated from vet tech institute in 2011 and is a certified veterinary technician. She has been working with animals since she was in high school. Amy has worked with a variety of species including birds, rabbits, reptiles, and wildlife. Amy lives with her husband, 3 small children, a lab named Claire, and a bunny named Charley Anderson. Amy enjoys scrapbooking in her spare time.

Dani

Veterinary Assistant

Dani's Bio

Dani joined our team in March of 17. Dani is very ecstatic and honored to be here with such amazing and passionate people! She’s currently working as both the receptionist and training to be a Technician. She studied with Penn Foster online schooling in Animal Behavior and Restraint for one year, and she’s teaching our team all that she’s learned. Her next goal is to become a Certified Veterinary Technician. Her passion is to help animals get the best care and treatment they need. When Dani is not working she likes to bartend, go boating and fishing, and listen to music (her favorite is Beyonce). Her favorite food is pasta. The first thing you’ll notice about Dani is her smile and her positive energy with everything she does! Ask her about her python snake Lola! 🙂

Katie

Veterinary Assistant

Katie's Bio

Born into a family with Siberian Huskies and Thoroughbreds, her love of animals began early. It was always her dream to work with animals as well as humans, and in 2011, she graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a BS in pre-veterinary medicine. She spent the next 3 years studying chiropractic medicine at National University of Health Sciences. It was at this time when she lost the first of her 4 miniature dachshunds, Kali, and Kolby, Jessica, and Rascal, were soon to follow. It was in this moment that she dedicated her life to saving animals that could not save themselves. Outside of work, she spends all of her time at the stable, riding as many horses as she can. She has been riding and competitively showing jumping horses for 20 years. She has a 22-year-old Thoroughbred, Magic, and a Labrador Retriever puppy, Lola. She loves traveling, so much so that she was a student ambassador for the state of Illinois in 2006. She also loves attending Blackhawks games and Bears games, as well as attending concerts, and enjoying anything that allows her to spend time in the water. The first thing you’ll notice about Katie is her kindness and willingness to listen, come in and meet her!

Kristina

Veterinary Assistant

Kristina's Bio

Kristina is a proud Cyclone, graduating from Iowa State University in 2015 with her BS in Animal Science and Pre-veterinary medicine. It’s no surprise that she ended up working with animals since she can never remember wanting to do anything else! Even her parents were surprised when as a child she consistently told people she wanted to be a veterinarian when she grew up. Since then, she has worked with animals at shelters, pet stores, and veterinarian offices. Kristina and her son David currently live in Wheeling with their two cats, Zanna and Zookie, dog, Camille, and guinea pig, Rufus. Her family also has a dog, Ellie (formerly known as Crosby), that they adopted from Heartland over ten years ago! When she has a spare minute Kristina loves to read fantasy novels and spend time outdoors with the kiddo! When you meet her, you’ll see instantly her passion to help you in any way and share her knowledge!

Maria

Client Service Coordinator

Maria's Bio

I have always had a passion for animals. For years I wanted to enter the veterinary field except it was never the right time. I have a background in retail, real estate and banking. It wasn’t until 2016 that I decided to take the plunge and began my studies at Penn Foster to be a Veterinary Assistant. I joined the Preiser Animal Hospital family in November 2017. I am currently studying tobe a Veterinary Technician. I live in Des Plaines with my husband and daughter and our two cats: Roxy and Boggie; and three dogs: Silver & Ms.Toto (Heartland alumni) and Kookie.

Javier

Veterinary Assistant

Javier's Bio

Bio coming soon!

Brad

Kennel Attendant Extraordinaire

Brad's Bio

Brad has been on the Preiser Animal Hospital’s team the longest–19 years!!! Brad’s bio is coming soon! 🙂

Chugach, Kenai and Miss Priscilla!

Welcome Committee

Welcome Committee Bio

We have quite a welcome committee here at Preiser Animal Hospital. Although rarely will you ever see all 3 of them in one room at one time there are 3 black cats that roam the halls of Preiser Animal Hospital. Chugach (aka Chewie) and his sister, Kenai came to Preiser Animal Hospital as strays once upon a time. Dr. Preiser took one look at their big orange eyes and fell in love instantly. Unfortunately, her German Shepherd had different aspirations for them. And for that reason, they came to call the hospital home. And it truly is their home. About a year later, along came a kitten named Priscilla, also a stray, and Chewie was instantly smitten. Shortly after her arrival ,Priscilla injured her arm and required a little more TLC. Chewie nursed her back to health and they have been living happily ever after since. Chewie can usually be found either on the sign-in clipboard or laying in the outgoing mailbox. Kenai is the brains of the operation. She is also our interior decorator at times, using her nails to help re-design the upholstery. As for Miss Priss. She is less enthusiastic about dogs so she tends to take cover until things quiet down. But when no one is around you will find her stretched out on the waiting room floor with her belly waiting to be petted or begging for water at the faucet (she has us trained quite well).

WE LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING FROM YOU.

Use the form below to send us a message! A member of our team will get back to you as quickly as possible. If you need immediate assistance, please give us a call at 847-827-5200.